Historic Depot, 50 North 4Th Avenue, Canton, Illinois

CLERICAL COMMITTEE Tuesday March 9, 2010 – 6:30 p.m. Historic Depot, 50 North 4th Avenue, Canton, Illinois

Aldermen in attendance: Dave Pickel, Jim Hartford, Gerald Ellis, Jorge Rivero, Larry Sarff, Rick Reed, Eric Schenck.

Absent: Alderman Craig West

Others in attendance: Mayor Kevin Meade, Deputy City Clerk Diana Tucker, City Attorney Chrissie Peterson, City Treasurer Aaron Anderson, City Administrator Jim Snider, Fire Chief Bonnie Cremer, Police Chief Dan Taylor, Public Works Director Clif O’Brien, Keith Plavec from Maurer Stutz Inc, ESDA Director Phil Fleming, SRPED Mark Rothert, Joe Ginger Video Services. In the audience was Daily Ledger John Froehling, Joe Davis, Stephanie Miller from Pro-Image, Rick Starcevich, and several citizens of The City of Canton.

Finance Alderman Eric Schenck, Chairman

Bills. City Administrator Jim Snider stated that page 2 of the bill list reflects a bite suit paid out of the general fund, but should be paid out of the asset forfeiture fund.

Motion and second was made by Aldermen Sarff/Rivero, to send the bills to council for consideration. The motion carried by voice vote, and was unanimous.

Treasurer’s Report. City Treasurer Aaron Anderson reported the following:

As you can see from the YTD General Fund deficit, we actually cut into our deficit by about $16,000 due to a profitable February. February General Fund revenue was $485,503 compared to $469,459 in expenses for a net gain for the month of $16,044. Revenue for the month was supported by receipt of a $22,444.50 reimbursement from the Canton School District for the school police officer and a jump in utility tax revenue. Utility tax receipts were $97,149 for the month. I had reported over the last couple of months that utility tax was projected to be significantly lower than in previous years. However, history has shown that utility tax receipts are the highest in the last 3 months of the fiscal year. This is, of course, due to utility usage increasing during the winter months.

There is nothing overly exciting to report on the General Fund expenditures this month. Most of the departments are in line with the usual monthly expenditures and there were no capital purchases during the month.

On the available cash section, you may notice that General Fund cash is somewhat high for the month at over $500,000. This is due to the fact that I reimbursed the General Fund from the Water & Sewer Fund earlier due to a tighter cash situation while we were waiting to receive our utility taxes for the month (they usually don’t come until the last 2 days of each month).

In response to Alderman Schenck’s question last week about what our balance will be at the end of this fiscal year, I believe that we will probably end up around $2.1 million. We began this fiscal year with total cash and investments of approximately $2.5 million and I’m conservatively

1 projecting that our deficit at year-end will be ($400,000). Since there is no capital purchases left to be made this year, I believe that is a reasonable estimate. Therefore, I think a $2.1 million balance at year-end would also be reasonable.

Lastly, I would like to point out the balance in the IH-TIF cash account is much higher this month due to the receipt of IDOT grant funds that were reimbursed to the IH-TIF.

General Fund Budget Report 2010-2011.

 General Fund Budgeted Revenues:

 Our current Telecommunication Tax Rate is at 5%. We could raise it 1% to 6%. If we passed an ordinance at the next council meeting (in one reading) we would be able to begin collecting the additional 1% in tax beginning July 1, 2010. The 1% increase would bring in an additional $71,000 of revenue annually. Due to lag factor with receiving proceeds from the Department of Revenue, we would probably only receive about 8 months of revenue or $48,000 in FY10-11.

 City Administrator Recommended Adjustments: I am recommending $930,475 in cuts to the General Fund Budget. This still leaves a budget shortfall of $504,259.

 FY12-11 Budget Review Sheet:

 I updated the report from last week to show the projected deficit budget for FY09-10 of <$586,075>. This deficit is due to $250,000 shortfall from State revenues and various budget amendments necessary in December, 2009.

The projected FY 2010-2011 General Fund Budget shortfall of $514,274 can be addressed by:

1. Raising the telecommunications tax by 1%

2. Fund the remaining deficit with surplus estimated by the City Treasurer to be at $2,100,000 on May 1, 2010.

3. Cut additional amounts from the General Fund Budget

4. Combination of the above three options.

The balance after the recommended adjustments would be a deficit of $504,259.00.

2 Alderman Larry Sarff asked if it would be possible to hold off on hiring a new police officer for at least 6 months. Jim Snider stated that the cost for the new officer is slightly over $70,000.00/year. Alderman Sarff commented that it is necessary to look at ways to restructure in various areas and hold off on hiring where possible.

Alderman Eric Schenck asked what amount was being budgeted to hire a comptroller. City Administrator Jim Snider stated that they budgeted $60,000.00 for the position. Alderman Schenck said the salary should be reduced to $40-$45,000.00/ year.

Alderman Eric Schenck recommended approving the proposed cuts, but making additional cuts in the Comptroller salary, hold off on the hiring of a police officer, consider a vacancy in the fire chief position and eliminating the fire apparatus.

Mayor Kevin Meade added that currently the group healthcare could face a 20% increase in costs. We will not have the information until the beginning of April.

City Administrator Jim Snider stated that many municipalities are seeing the impact of the economy, and some communities have received lower salary increases from the union negotiations.

Alderman Jim Hartford stated that he disagrees with outsourcing ESDA.

City Administrator Jim Snider stated that budget discussion would continue at next week’s meeting.

Motion and second was made by Alderman Schenck/Sarff to draft an ordinance to add a 1% increase to the telecommunication tax.

City Administrator Jim Snider stated this would need to be passed at next week’s meeting so we could see the impact effective July 1, 2010- giving us $48,000.00 this year.

Alderman Reed expressed his concern and disagreement with raising taxes in our community.

The motion carried by voice vote and was unanimous.

Call One- Phone Service Renewal

City Administrator Jim Snider stated that call one currently provides the city phone services. Call one is offering a three year contract for the city. By signing an agreement for a three year contract the city would save approximately $250.00/month.

Motion and second was made by Alderman Sarff/Rivero to send to Council for consideration.

3 rd Avenue Contract B Bids

City Engineer Keith Plavec explained the bid tabulation for the Third Avenue extension.

3 B-1 is from 590 feet south on Third Avenue all the way down Maple Street and then Maple Street from Third Avenue to the railroad tracks.

B-2 is from the railroad track to 5th Avenue

The reason for separating was due to funding sources. The USEDA was only paying for work within the International Harvester site.

Five bids were received; however N.E. Finch bid could not be read because they were missing one of the mandatory documents. The low bidder was Otto Baum Company at $1,383,851.55.

Motion and second was made by Alderman Sarff/Rivero to accept the low bid from Auto Baum Company Inc.

61 East Side Square Change Order- Leander Construction

City Engineer Keith Plavec recommended changing the original two windows on the building to one window. Taking out a window adds cost since brick must be used to fill the area. This creates an additional $484.00.

Keith Plavec further explained that the other item is the time extension due to weather. Because of low temperatures 39 days was missed. Keith would recommend adding the 39 days and approving the $484.00 from the TIF fund.

Motion and second was made by Alderman Sarff/Rivero to approve the recommendations and send to council for consideration.

The Finance Committee adjourned at 8:30 p.m.

4 Legal & Ordinance Alderman Dave Pickel, Chairman

Overnight Parking in the Downtown

Attorney Chrissie Peterson stated that a business is interested in locating downtown that would be opened 24 hours a day. The parking ordinance was reviewed, and discovered that it states you should not park any vehicle on city streets between 2:00-6:00 A.M. unless you are a doctor on an emergency call. The prospective business needs to have the parking issue addressed. Some other communities offer’s permits at a small fee. The City of Galesburg has a very detailed parking ordinance. Galesburg breaks down their parking to time limits ranging from 15 minutes up to 72 hour parking. Long term parking is directed to municipal lots.

Attorney Chrissie Peterson recommended permit parking for this block for the specific prospective business owner.

Further discussion was made by Alderman Sarff about the parking problem in the entire downtown area. The Main Street Committee recently discussed this problem.

The franchise for the prospective business requires 7-8 spaces available for customers.

Discussion took place regarding using signs to direct people to city parking lots. It was determined that that the restriction between 2:00-6:00 A.M. should be eliminated from the ordinance. Attorney Chrissie Peterson suggested bringing this back to next month’s streets and garbage agenda.

Motion and second by Aldermen Sarff/Rivero to amend the parking ordinance that would restrict the parking during a 24 hour period and send to council for consideration.

Animal Nuisances Complaints in Downtown

Alderman Dave Pickel stated that he has received complaints about the animal owners walking their dogs on the streets and creating a mess. The City currently has an ordinance in place for animal owners walking pets on city streets and sidewalks and keeping the area clean. Chief Dan Taylor stated that this could be enforced better and violators would receive a citation.

Legal & Ordinance Committee adjourned at 8:55 p.m.

5 Community & Industrial Development Alderman Jorge Rivero, Chairman

Update from Mark Rothert SRPED Executive Director.

Downtown/Former IH Site:  Downtown forums held on 2/9/10 and 2/25/10 was a success with about 50 people showing up in total. Previously I had sent you the results outlining the results of those forums.  Talking and working with downtown business owners in preparation for spring construction season and façade improvements.  SRPED approved a loan for downtown business to undertake façade enhancements; this loan application now has to be approved by the USDA Galesburg Office.  Working on change of scope to SRPED façade grant of $40,000 so that we can grant to the City for assistance on façade of 61 East Side Square.

Special Events/Tourism:  SRPED will be submitting hotel/motel tax request to City shortly as part of budget process  New website design should be up and running sometime in the next two weeks.  SRPED agreed to match City, County, Park District, and Township with County’s ITEP local match request; SRPED is matching with $20,000 from funds we received from, now defunct, FCCDC organization.  Illinois River Road National Scenic Byway: On Wednesday, March 10, 2010, the Illinois River Road National Scenic Byway organization will be hosting a stakeholder meeting at Dickson Mounds from 5-7pm. I would encourage any interested County Board member to attend to weigh in on the future plans of the Byway. Fulton County, with its rich nature and history is an integral piece of the Byway. If you ever have comments or questions about the Byway, please let me know as I also serve on its board of directors.

Business Attraction and Support: The SRPED is working with the following business development opportunities. Please call me if you would like to talk privately about any of these:  Working with Pro-Image asphalt company on site selection of city property in the industrial park.  Working with several small business owners regarding financing with low interest loans for façade program as well as ones out in the County.  Worked with a national retailer presently located in Canton who would like to expand.  Helped River Crossroads Restaurant (Arrowhead Junction) with business development grant

Grant Work:  On February 10, 2010 the Illinois Housing Development Authority announced $15.4 million in grants to help homeowners afford home repairs. The City of Canton received $501,000 and Fulton County received $821,000 (through the Western Illinois Regional Council). Fulton County’s grant funds are to be used only in unincorporated areas. The grants were awarded for IHDAs HOME Single Family Owner-Occupied Rehabilitation

6 Program to assist in the repair and upgrade of single-family homes. Homeowners will apply to the County (or WIRC) to receive forgivable loans of up to $40,000, based on the amount of rehabilitation needed.  Performed grant administration and reporting for DCEO, USDA, and Hotel/Motel tax grants.

Other:  GED Subsidy: The SRPED is working with Spoon River College and the Regional Office of Education to create a no-cost system whereby people can achieve their GED certificate. Free test preparation for the GED is already offered through SRC, however it costs $50 per test through the ROE to take the GED exam. The SRPED’s goal is to eliminate this financial barrier so that every adult has the opportunity to achieve a base-line level of education to apply at places like Cook Canton (that only requires a GED) and be successful.

 Peace Corps Fellows Program Proposal: The SRPED is interested to hire a WIU Peace Corps Fellow later this year to serve in other parts of the County outside of Canton. The SRPED has agreed to split the cost of the Fellow with the remaining costs being raised among the various local governments and businesses in the County. The Fellow would work with each participating community on a specific project for an 11-month time period. Many smaller communities cannot afford a full-time economic developer, so this is a cost-effective way to have a person work on a city or village’s community development needs. The base cost to hire a Fellow is $22,500 however we would like to raise up $27,500 to cover overhead costs such as mileage reimbursement, laptop purchase, copying expense, etc. Several communities such as Lewistown, Cuba, Vermont, and Ipava have shown an interest in helping to cost share. The SRPED still needs to raise several more thousand dollars to make the project feasible. If the County is interested to help in the cost share, please let me know.

 SRPED Annual Luncheon: On Thursday, May 6, 2010, the SRPED will be hosting its annual luncheon with guest speaker Colleen Callahan, who serves as the United States Department of Agriculture’s Illinois State Director. Director Callahan will speak about rural and agricultural development. More details will be forthcoming so save the date.

 Historic Preservation Conference: SRC, SRPED, and Canton Main Street are collaborating to host a historic preservation conference from 9am-3pm on Friday March 12, 2010 at the Spoon River College. Speakers at the event include Dr. Robert Ogle, an instructor of historic preservation programs at Lamar Community College, George Ridgway, the chief architect for Cook Group, and Jim Murphy, president of CFC, Properties, A Cook subsidiarySRPED Board meeting on March 4, 2010

SRPED Service Agreement

Mark Rothert explained that each year the SRPED enters into an economic development services agreement with the City of Canton to perform duties and services related to economic and community development. This agreement renews annually and has been since 2006. Approximately 20 difference scope of services was listed as services provided to the city in the summary. No changes were made from last year’s contract. SRPED reports hours quarterly to help ease the burden on the general fund. SRPED base request is $90,000.00 plus reimbursable expenses--- which include insurance, mileage, postage, office supplies etc.

7 Alderman Larry Sarff stated that all of the other departments took a decrease in the budgets, and feels the SRPED should also receive a decrease. A 10% decrease for SRPED was discussed.

Motion and second was made by Alderman Sarff/Schenck to direct Jim Snider to visit with SRPED about the decrease and come back next week to council with an agreement.

The motion carried by voice vote, and was unanimous.

Pro-Image Seal coating & Asphalt Repair, Inc.- Development Agreement

City Administrator Jim Snider reported that the city received an inquiry from Pro-Image Seal- coating regarding the purchase of three lots—lots 17, 18 and 19 in the industrial park. Pro- Imaging is looking at upgrading their business plans and open an asphalt plant in the industrial park. The economic advantage to the city would be to sell the lots for $5,000.00 per acre which would result in a sales price of $57,615.00. The asphalt plant suggests they would create 10 new jobs for the community. The plant would offer asphalt for construction jobs, but also for retail- which would offer additional sales tax to The City of Canton. The facility is a temporary type structure. A discount of 15% for future coal patch material for the city. Currently the city spends approximately $12,000.00/yr. The total savings to the city with the discount would be approximately $2,000.00/yr. The city would be expanding the roadway 40 feet at a cost of $20,000.00 to the city. If Pro-Image were to purchase the lots and have an agreement they would need to comply with various permits with IEPA and visit zoning issues. They would need to follow up with IDOT and Ameren with various requirements.

Stephanie Miller part owner with Pro-Image Seal-coating discussed the plans to have the asphalt company in the City of Canton. Co owners are Daniel Miller and Patricia Miller. This is a small family owned union company. The company started in 2006 by Patricia Miller in West Peoria. In 2008 the company moved to North Pekin. From 2006-2009 the asphalt segment jumped from 18% to 73%.

Stephanie Miller addressed the advantages for the City of Canton. The first advantage is job creation. They are currently working to become DBE certified. Currently they would be the only contractor in 3 districts that provide this certain patchwork. They currently are working with various agencies to gain union workers for the positions.

The closest residential area to the proposed plant would be the mobile home park. The closest mobile home is ¼ mile from the proposed plant.

Alderman Eric Schenck asked what the construction plans are for the plant. Stephanie Miller stated that the plant itself is semi-portable. Some of the items will come in as 100% portable, and some will be semi-portable. The plant would have handicapped assessable restrooms on-site. The control house would sit 10 feet above ground and sit on blocks. The parking area would be in this area, with the restroom below the control house. Alderman Schenck stated that the plant would be on one lot, but questioned what the other two lots would be used for. Stephanie Miller reported that the additional two lots would be used as a buffer zone. This would be between the agricultural zone and the plant.

Chrissie Peterson would do some further research regarding the taxes of the plant and bring the information back.

8 Many residents from The City of Canton were present during the discussion. Citizens asked questions pertaining to the smell, fumes and noise of the plant. Pro-Image will have a bag house that will meet the federal and state regulations and will filter out dust. Natural gas will be used- which will create a clean burn. Pro-Image will put additives into the process to decrease the smell.

Alderman Schenck asked what would happen if years down the road the asphalt company would want to sell the property. Stephanie Miller stated that they are currently working on a plan that if they were to stop operations, the asphalt company would make sure the land was put back as it was originally. Attorney Chrissie Peterson reported that in the past the agreements state that the current owner would not be able to sell the property to a non-taxable entity without the city’s permission. Items could be placed in the agreement to address such an issue.

Joe Davis- Owner of Davis Sand and Gravel has worked with Pro-Imaging for the last 2 years. Joe feels the company is very good to work with, and said they would be an asset to the community.

Mike Stahl with Spoon River Blacktop is located in Canton. Spoon River Blacktop will be certified by the middle of summer. They have been in business for 25 years and currently employees 25 employees. Mike expressed his concerns with Pro-Image and stated that the proposed plant is only 800 feet from the trailer park. Mike raised concerns about Pro-Image not selling blacktop to non-union people.

An adjacent landowner in Canton commented that he does not have any problems with the plant, and is happy that they will offer jobs with good wages.

Rick Starcevich- a citizen of the City of Canton stated that it is a good asset to the community.

Alderman Schenck stated that he would be more comfortable if the development agreement addressed the re-sell of the lots or looking at a lease agreement.

Alderman Sarff asked Keith Plavec to get the actual distance from the proposed plant to the development at Westview School.

Motion and second was made by Alderman Schenck/Sarff to direct the city attorney and city staff to work with Pro-Image on a purchase back option or alternatively a lease arrangement for the use of the property in an agreement. The agreement could be brought to council next week for consideration.

The Community & Industrial Development committee adjourned at 9:15 p.m.

9 Negotiations, Grievance & Personnel Alderman Larry Sarff, Chairman

There was nothing listed on the agenda and discussion was not held.

The Negotiations, Grievance & Personnel Committee adjourned at 9:16 p.m. to go into executive session.

Executive session adjourned at 9:45 p.m. into open session.

Adjourned

Recording Secretary,

Diana Tucker Deputy Clerk